Oswallt Vaughan
Emperor Oswallt 'The Mace' Vaughan, known simply as Emperor Vaughan is the second and current Emperor of Athrugadh. Vaughan the Soldier When King Harold Uril invaded Ariilyth's neighbours in the decade long Conquest of the Aedoln Duchies, Oswallt Vaughan (pronounced: 'Oz-wallt Vawn') left the stern fortress of his matching noble family to march east. A powerful biotic, and disciplined soldier, Oswallt killed and saved enough people to be branded a war hero. Yet despite his prowess and discipline as a commander in the field, there was always one thing holding him back: his unshakeable morality, which eventually interfered when the time came for him to make an immediate decision that could topple the whole war effort. His action, while saving thousands of innocent people, lead his comrades to slaughter, and thus he was court marshalled and confined in military prison. For mysterious reasons, (the wealth and respect of his House which they made sure to flaunt in advantage of not so subtle corruption) he was released without a discharge, but left the military all the same. Vaughan then lived his next five years in scorn. Vaughan the Officer When Harold's invasion was at a standstill, with the Aedoln realms slowly chipping them away and Ariilyth desperate, Vaughan made a return, this time not in the field, but behind it as an officer. His reputation doomed to prevent him from getting very far as everyone expected him to scrub things up even worse with his attempts to be a hero. They were wrong. Many say that Oswallt Vaughan the Soldier had died in prison, and that five years later his cursed spirit returned to punish the east with a bloody vengeance as Oswallt Vaughan the Officer. Vaughan the officer was not Vaughan the soldier, not in the slightest. Vaughan the officer ruthlessly stomped out the opposition before and even beside him. He rose through the ranks as he ravaged and bit away at Aedol through whatever means like a rabid dog, until eventually he layed its bones before King Harold Uril. Ever since, he's held a fearsome and legendary reputation in Ariilyth for better or worse, enough that his name alone would drastically affect the outcome of the Ariilythian Civil War. The Ariilythian Civil War Decades later, when Aodhain Fhion declared himself King of Arohgard and made claim to Ariilyth's throne, not a soul foresaw the upstart warlord straying any further than the ashen wastes he called home before being dismembered and fed to the siúlcrith he lived with. What they all failed to consider was that the insane King Harold had not only committed genocide, but conscripted men against their will into his army: two large strikes against the matured Lord Vaughan. Of course, Harold's lords all bent to his bidding, as the sycophants they were; this included the Lord of Southwing - residing in the most heavily garrisoned city in Ariilyth - who like a loyal lapdog booted his forces out to crush Aodhain for his good king, knowing that Vaughan was sending the garrison at his own Vaughan Keep to defend the city. Vaughan and his men were given free and unhindered entrance into Southwing... and immediately annexed it - in the name of Aodhain, no less. In that one swift stroke, King Aodhain went from the laughing stock of Ariilyth to the most feared monarch in recent history, and he had nothing to do with it. Southwing fell in line with Arohgard, and Glasia followed soon after in a stroke of fear. Croi had very little time to weigh their options before Vaughan swarmed in through the mountain pass he knew like his back hand and descended upon Noss with a surprise siege. As Vaughan took Noss, Aodhain personally waged war on Maes-Aur to the west of Arohgard, directly below Camadyr's Reach, Vaughan throttled the lords of the north in what became known as the legendary Battle of Redford. Harold's largest division slugged south from Hailleachta through the now hostile forests of Croi, hoping to camouflage themselves from the Rebel's air power. The king thought he would surprise Lord Vaughan by bypassing the lake guarded and treasured heartland and taking Southwing by surprise. Suspecting an attack on his home, Oswallt placed several paratroopers in Croi, which was not unexpected anyway given Croi's value as the heartland of Ariilyth. But nevertheless, it scared Harold into moving swiftly and quietly, though not blindly as he sent several recon operations ahead, most of which came back with satisfactory information… or so thought the general. When Harold’s prime army reached the Camadyr, the only way to cross without revealing themselves was via the Roseford, a large ford stuck between the River Camadyr, flowing directly from Lake Noss. When half the force had crossed, Oswallt's men came from the trees in a flurry and ambushed them from both sides, forcing the royalists to fight on both sides of the river, with a good chunk of their men stuck stranded in the middle of the ford. Tanks and artillery came roaring from the woods, peppering those stuck in the reddening river, and pushing the stragglers into the fallen’s place only to repeat the process - eventually the bombardment proved too much, and what was to be Harold’s game changer, surrendered after a definitive defeat. The Roseford was renamed the "Redford", as the previous name was considered an understatement henceforth, and Lord Vaughan received the moniker: The Bludgeoner of Redford, whether he wanted it or not. With pressure on Ardu-Orga from Aodhain below, Vaughan intended to take this chance to remove Hailleachta from the game, however, his striking victories in Croi had brought a curse in of themselves, as he had no choice but to take the rest of his force and trudge them way through the frosted muck in order to get to Ulacran, which was wedged in the mountains, defended valiantly by the native Haillics, and reinforced by the Northmen. A punishing journey for sure, and the following siege would be little better as it would see Vaughan's first defeat. Yet, by then, King Harold had been slain by Ionadai Comhairle, and Aodhain had taken Maes-Aur. With this news, after accomplishing a pyrrhic victory, the Haillics’ morale plummeted, and they surrendered. This left Camadyr's Reach and Northwing to their own devices, and the scrambling members of The Crown turned to Vossland at last for desperate salvation. Ardu-Orga fell with the Reddening of Goldwing, and Aodhain ascended to the throne - naming Lord Vaughan the Field Marshall of a long overdue, nationalised Ariilyth. Age of The Combine In modern times, Lord Vaughan is far more tame than he was in Aedol, though his reputation would disagree. A balance between the soldier Vaughan and officer Vaughan of Aedol, refusing to fall to both extremes. Despite his position, he does not promote war. He sees it as it is: a necessary evil. Thus, if he believes war to be avoidable, he will strive to avoid it to prevent any rash actions. However, one would be mistaken if they were to take this as hesitation, Vaughan is not above invading unprovoked if for the benefit of Ariilyth, and when he does, he is nigh ruthless and willing to pull all manner of dirt to win. Despite this, he does actually have a code against severe war crimes (of his own choosing), and at the top of his set of rules is an absolute forbidding of genocide in any form on any society. His attitude here is actually inspired by his close friend: Rohan Argadain, a soldier he not only respects for his abilities, but admires for holding to his moral values, while knowing when they best be put aside in the name of duty and refusing to fall cynical in the wake of the resulting actions. The very person Vaughan wishes he was back in his own time serving on the battlefield. He served as Ariilyth's Combine Councillor. This decision was publicly justified by Aodhain stating that the Crown believed war to be coming soon and thus a wartime leader representing Ariilyth in the CmB would be more efficient. In actuality, and unknown to anyone but those Aodhain trusts (and Loch), Lord Vaughan was the written heir to the Athrugadhi Empire, and was stationed in Ahkriim in order to keep him far from the reach of Lord Lochlainn Comhairle with the additional intent of preparing him for the throne. Coronation and Reign Following the game changing events of the Siege of Barknor and Blaze of Ardor, Lord Oswallt Vaughan ascended to the throne as Emperor, taking the reigns over a people grief stricken and pessimistic of the future. A small spark of hope emerged in them all that day, as Emperor Vaughan's first royal decree, immediately after being crowned, was to condemn the rogue Lochlainn Comhairle to death and pledge to destroy him. Despite this, the public's demons were not exorcised, as the weight of their tragedy still tugged heavily, and many were still mostly cynical of yet another monarch in power. Emperor Vaughan especially had a reputation of brutality that was not exactly unfounded, nor disproved with his execution of the members of the former Court Council, with the exception of Councillor Lorina Hilsan who remains in office. The execution was carried out by the Emperor personally, by bludgeoning them to death with his mace. That being said, these were the same individuals who allowed Lochlainn to legally annihilate Aterius, so on the other end of the spectrum, some insisted it was justified. Emperor Vaughan then replaced the now deceased members of the Court Council with competent and trusted individuals; who were also popular with the public. The Council and Emperor Vaughan would proceed to work together - in a unison not seen at the council table since the early reign of King Harold - to fix the people's woes of the monarchy. This birthed the Stability Insurance Act - which would allow the council power to legally veto the emperor's authority should the monarch fall mentally unwell, as Aodhain and Harold both eventually did. With this act, people truly began to see a greater light in their new Emperor, and for the first time in a while, Ariilythian patriotism was beginning to take a high it hasn't seen since the civil war. Emperor Vaughan mercilessly rooted out corruption in Athrugadhi politics in general; has made moves against the terrorist faction Scourge; and in a surprising series of events: vassalised the nation of Spookalot, renaming it 'Scanraigh' (for obvious reasons), all due to his demand for the one planet of Sarōtamā: which is the source of a plague that's been killing off Ariilyth's mages, another consequence of the Ardor Incident. The curse prompted the Emperor to form the Mage Security, Protection, Research and Cure, abbreviated as the 'MSPRC', to maintain the plague, research its cure, and care for those afflicted. This organisation spawns some controversy as its Department of Mage Security is tasked with hunting mages down, and confining them to hazard containment facilities in order to keep the plague from spreading, and to treat those afflicted by it. Understandably, a small percentage of Athrugadhi adhere against the idea of imprisoning innocents, no matter for what purpose and how well they're treated. Probably the most expected thing Vaughan has done as Emperor is shuttle the militarybudget. Before Vaughan's ascension, the Athrugadhi military was a mess under Aodhain. The mass production of Phoenix Model Power Armour for standard infantry was no doubt a show of Aodhain's hubris, and perhaps thought to be a good idea at the time, but it bled the strong arm of Ariilyth by the very veins. Emperor Vaughan did away with the phoenix model with the exception of the biotic set, and instead provides his standard light and heavy infantry with exoframes, that while less sturdy, are still effective and allow the military to spend elsewhere; while power armour and other such costly ambitions are restricted to the elite units. This permitted the development of new, and improved weapons under the official state owned manufacturer: Vanguard International, as well as a revamped navy, allowing a broader variety of warships in replacement of the three classes under Aodhain's rule. Furthermore, Emperor Vaughan's reputation as a military leader, as well as his rising popularity as Emperor, catalysed a substantial ascension in recruitment numbers, as Athrugadhi patriotism and morale exploded into an all-time high. Emperor Vaughan has, in nine months, transformed the Athrugadhi Military from a laughingstock among the other powers of the galaxy - nothing but an underling relying on the Ka'lu'umil for protection, into a considerable force in its own right. Of course, Emperor Vaughan had to take from something for the military to rise, and this chance was generously given by nations such as Aterius, Kedor and an unknown humanitarian nation that soon fell off the grid, who all donated to the cause of rebuilding Ardor - which is another priority of Emperor Vaughan. While it would be possible to simply institute Thalcair as the permanent capital of Athrugadh, Emperor Vaughan has not disregarded Ardor as the jewel heart of the Ariilythian people. Indeed, the new Emperor himself is a patriot to Ariilyth, and wishes to see it flourish culturally as well. This is a surprise to many who assumed the Iron Crowned would shape the nation to match his joyless personality. In contrast to Emperor Aodhain who liked to show off his own majesty, Emperor Vaughan expresses his pride in his country through less personal means. He does not shower himself in finery, nor has he been seen wearing the Phoenix Crown since his coronation, or even sit the throne. Yet he has improved the appearance of the Athrugadhi flag, the Red Order, and refuses - to the ire of many - to strip Ariilyth of the phoenix - arguing vehemently that the phoenix is, and forever will be, the symbol of Ariilyth, and that to strip the Ariilythian people of the symbol that birthed them in the days of Rialoir would be to spit on Ariilyth's legacy over, and would deem them as weaker than they ever were in history. Which is a stance he is both lauded and criticised for. With criticism in mind, Emperor Vaughan's decision to slowly allow the Solasists back into Ariilythian society has been one of the most controversial decisions made by any Emperor in Ariilyth's history. Given that Theiwin Du'antiil was a Solasist, and that it was the Solasist "god" who destroyed Ardor in the first place, meaning that some Solasists may be inclined to follow their lord's example of chaos, which is not entirely unfounded. For this reason, Emperor Vaughan has inclined to separate Solasists from one another, and to outlaw public worship and missionary work, but to allow them to conduct their prayers in private. Also, as part of the military reforms, Ariilyth is undergoing a massive rise in security, thus ensuring any such attack is snuffed out before it can even begin. It will only be after the security quota is met that Solasists will be welcomed back to Ariilyth, though the issue is still heated among the Arohgardian Pagan population, who see Solasism as nothing less than the ultimate enemy. In terms of foreign policy, Emperor Vaughan is one of the leading figures in the formation of a successor to The Combine. He has, for the most part, fixed relations with the Ka'lu'umil that were broken by Aodhain, and is especially welcoming of Aterius - which he hopes to see grow beyond the damage wrought on them by Lochlainn Comhairle, and is willing to assist them in the endeavour - even agreeing to protect them until the completion of the General Order, after-which a mutual defensive pact will be signed. On top of this, he plans to personally visit Caudillo Antonius Dios to further discuss Athrugadhi-Ateri relations, and to conduct a joint search for one Lochlainn Comhairle, who Vaughan suspects to still have ties in Belryn to be investigated. However, while he is on good terms with Aterius and the Ka'lu'umil, he is somewhat frustrated with the UAAA for their close ties to the United Republic, and for inviting them into the talks. He has made it abundantly clear to Joko Widodo that continued friendship with the United Republic will be treated with protest against Asian entry into the reformed alliance. The United Republic is seen by Emperor Vaughan as a galactic pest, and he is unconvinced by their recent reforms; believing they're all in vain attempt to heighten the galactic opinion of them. He is also highly expecting them to intervene with his expansion plans on the Aarlana arm, which are more than contested. Personality and Traits (WIP) The first thing to know about Emperor Vaughan personally is that he is calm, calculating, and as blunt and unbending as the mace he carries. It is for this reason that Lochlainn Comhairle fears him so; enough to risk his own neck simply to prevent him from ascending as Emperor, because when Vaughan issues a command, he does not lightly retract it. He cannot be bought, or swayed into a personal agenda, as he truly and selflessly serves the Athrugadhi people and state. Unlike Aodhain who so flamboyantly relished in his position, Vaughan treats his newfound royalty as yet another office - a means to an end in achieving a goal, and such does not bastardise official Athrugadhi symbols and heraldry with his own, nor does he even sit a throne or adorn himself in royalties. This statement was powerfully made in the form of the Athrugadhi flag, stripped clean of Aodhain's personal insignia, and replaced not with Vaughan's own, but instead left as a simple yet memorable gold cross on a field of navy blue - the practical design of a practical man. Of course, Emperor Vaughan does take pride in his personal achievements and crest, as shown by his mace and armour, the former being the symbol of House Vaughan, and the latter being inspired by his title: The Bludgeoner of Redford, he simply separates them from the Crown. Morally, Emperor Vaughan himself has been undergoing a long transitional period. Regretful of his actions in Aedol, and to some degree in the Civil War, he attempts to balance both Vaughan the Soldier and Vaughan the Officer with logic, reasoning, and situational awareness. But, unfortunately, he is often confronted with the complications it brings. Vaughan wants what is best for Ariilyth, but often the means of achieving his goals to this end can become mired. Being as organised as he is, to give himself a more defined line to draw, he created his code, which he follows to the letter, and uses as his moral pillar. If an action or offence goes against the code, it is not an option to Vaughan under every circumstance. If it does not, it is not out of the question. Yet, under the circumstance that it borders immoral, or flat out is immoral, he will heavily consider other - less deprived - options beforehand. Vaughan is not the sort to wait around and delay on tasks. When he sets his mind on something, he gets to it immediately. A man of action to the very bone, perhaps even to an extreme as he is a workaholic. Given the weight of his tasks, this addiction burns him out quickly. In the past, it caused him enough stress to have gone grey at no less than 43 (see picture). He's dealing with additional addiction problems as a consequence of this, having latched himself onto a number of stimulants and depressants. Also cannabis, which is legal in the Athrugadhi Empire. Thankfully, he is responsible enough to stay away from anything that could bring severe harm to himself, and the nation. Skills and Abilities Vaughan the Officer is a respected and feared military tactician, known for his carefully considered methods often ranging from the deceptive to the brutal; sometimes both at once, as demonstrated at the famous Battle of Redford. His deeds have made him a legend in Ariilyth for better or worse, and he is aware of it, using it to his advantage to boost the morale and discipline of his troops. He also uses this fact to discipline himself never to falter, keeping his mind constantly sharp. He is adaptable behind the board, ruthless to a degree, and is capable of dealing in many forms of warfare, be them guerrilla or more direct conflicts. Vaughan the Soldier was renowned for a reason. In the Aedoln Conquests, he was considered to be one of the most prolific soldiers in the field, which was the foundation of his fame. While Vaughan has not really been on the front-lines since, he consistently keeps himself in top shape and form via the highest quality virtual battlefield simulators, ensuring his physical strength, adaptability, and precision never falter should the day come when he will need them again. He is knowledgeable with firearms, explosives, and other weaponry, but where he truly shines is in melee with blunt trauma weapons. He's wielded his family mace ever since he was still blonde, serving as a CQC specialist, and if this were not devastating enough, he has survived prolonged exposure to veronul, and is a trained biotic as a result. Using this ability in conjunction with his melee prowess, he is capable of getting around the field in a blink, and delivering head crushers from above with irregular speed thanks to his high end augmentations befitting of the Emperor. Gallery File:Vaughan uniform 4.jpg|Vaughan's military uniform File:Bludgeoner.png|Vaughan's power armour File:Muon_rifle.png|Vaughan's Gríobhtine Muon Rifle File:Vaughan_mace.png|The Mace of Vaughan File:Talonfire.jpg|The actual Gríobhtine File:Crown_of_Ariilyth.jpg|The Phoenix Crown File:Athrugadhi_Outfit.jpg|Vaughan's favourite outfit File:Young_Vaughan_3.jpg|Young Oswallt Vaughan File:Mace_class_capital.png|The Grand Hussar - Emperor Vaughan's Mace Class Capital Ship File:Vaughan_coat_of_arms.png|House Vaughan Coat of Arms File:Vaughan's_red_order.png|Knight of the Red Order, wearing redesigned power armour and wielding a Solveras tau rifle Category:Characters Category:Status: Alive Category:Humans Category:Ariilyth Category:Southmen Category:Combine Councilors Category:Cyborgs Category:Nobility Category:Military Category:Biotics Category:Athrugadhi Category:National Leaders Category:Belryn Characters Category:Rebels Category:Royalty Category:Skolr's characters Category:Classic Altachtics